This post is sponsored by ThredUp; however, all thoughts and opinions are my own.

"Here's to strong women: may we know them, may we be them, may we raise them." Nothing has rang truer in my mind as a woman and as a mother, than it did the day my daughter was born. Being a girl mom changes things -- it just does. And I'm sure most other mothers of daughter would agree -- having a girl makes you so much more aware of how you talk to and about yourself, how you view food and exercise, how being strong and healthy is the only goal.

We really make an effort in our home to not focus on weight -- we don't own a scale. Matt and I don't ever talk about "how fat" we are, whether or not we want to lose weight, we don't point of specific body parts we'd like to change. We eat healthy, VERY healthy.. but not for the purpose of "being skinny"; no, we eat healthy because we want to fill our bodies with good things that FUEL us, that make us stronger! And I'm so grateful for this mindset -- because it wasn't always like this (for me).

For years, I used to obsess over every calorie I ate, every minute I ran on the treadmill, every weight I lifted. I went to the gym so that I could indulge and then I'd feel guilty and go back to work off even more calories. I couldn't eat a thing without considering how long it would take me to burn it off on the elliptical. What a sad way to live, friends! Thankfully, soon after that, I met Matt and I can honestly say, in the 6.5 years we've been together, I've never thought about food in that way again. Being loved no matter what changes a person -- so now I exercise (sometimes haha!) because I WANT to, not because I feel like I HAVE to. I eat healthy because it makes me feel good and strong, not because it'll make me skinnier. Those self-loathing thoughts don't even cross my mind anymore and that freedom is something I want my kids, especially my daughter, to always live in.

My favorite "right" from the Girls' Bill of Rights is this: "Girls have the right to accept and appreciate their bodies." This is true for all ages and became even more of a reality for me after having children - our bodies can do incredible things as women, one of which is to become pregnant and give birth. Pregnancy is incredible -- you are literally growing a human being. A HUMAN. Just let that sink in for a moment. It's nothing short of a miracle and instead of being celebrated, most women I know lament the extra weight and skin and stretch marks (mainly because society tells us we should bounce right back and not be changed by it). But the reality is, we ARE changed by becoming mothers and that change is BEAUTIFUL. Hard, but beautiful -- and I get it! I do. I'm a woman, I've had two children, I've been there. But that accomplishment, growing and then birthing our babies, it should empower us, not shame us! We have the right to ACCEPT and APPRECIATE our bodies. For what they are currently! Not just what they can be in the future.

So let's be strong, friends. Let's be healthy. Let's be kind -- to ourselves and our bodies. Let's learn to LOVE the way we were created, the way God made us. And then let's pass this legacy down to our daughters and start a revolution of beautiful, strong, confident women -- truly, may we know them, may we be them, may we raise them. It starts with us!

To shop the closets of some amazing women and learn more about how ThredUp is celebrating International Women's Day and giving back, check out these links below: